Introduction and Features

NZXT is introducing the H440 Mid-Tower case in their H Series line. The new H440 chassis will be available in two different color schemes; white with black accents and black with red accents. Both versions exhibit clean lines and a sleek design. Gone are the 5.25” optical drive bays and in their place you get three 120mm intake fans. In addition to providing excellent case cooling with four included fans the H440 is also very water-cooling friendly with support for water-cooling radiators on the top, front and rear of the case. The left side panel features a large acrylic window to showcase the motherboard area and the H440 can support up to eight internal 3.5”/2.5” HDDs/SSDs: 6+2.

NZXT H440 Mid-Tower Chassis

The lower section of the H440 case, which houses the power supply, is shrouded from view and provides a lot of room for cable management. The color accented shroud features a lighted NZXT logo and there are two LEDs built into the back panel to provide light when making connections; very nice.

The NZXT H440 Mid-Tower case comes with four NZXT FN V2 fans preinstalled: (3) 120mm intake fans in the front and (1) 140mm exhaust fan on the back. Dust filters are provided for the three front intake fans and also on the bottom of the case for the PSU intake fan. And up to three more 120mm fans (or two 140mm fans) can be added to the top panel if desired.

Here is what NZXT has to say about the H440 Mid-Tower case:

“The new H440 features a doorless, ODD-free front panel made entirely of steel while a large, full-view window reveals an interior specially engineered to make any build seamless and beautiful. The H440 ensures a hassle-free experience, allowing anybody to become an expert on clean cable management. The H440 comes standard with four of NZXT’s newly designed FN V2 case fans. An unheard of 3 x 120mm in front and 1 x 140mm in rear. And newly designed steel HDD drive trays can support up to eight internal 3.5”/2.5” HDDs/SSDs: 6+2. The H440 supports both 140mm and 120mm fans, the steel top and front panels come Kraken ready, fitting radiators up to 360mm in size to offer comprehensive water-cooling performance in a sleek, minimalist package.”

Introduction and Features

Corsair's new CS Series Modular PSUs include four models; the CS450M, CS550M, CS650M and CS750M. All of the power supplies in the CS Series feature modular cables, high efficiency (80 Plus Gold certified) and quiet operation. In addition, Corsair continues to offer a full line of high quality power supplies, memory components, cases, cooling components, SSDs and accessories for the PC market.

Here is what Corsair has to say about their CS Series Modular PSUs: “The CS Modular Series is designed for basic and midrange PCs, but offers features and performance traditionally reserved for higher-end models. 80 Plus Gold efficiency and a thermally controlled fan ensure quiet operation and lower energy use, and the modular, detachable cable set makes installations and upgrades faster and better looking.”

“80 Plus Gold rated efficiency saves you money on your power bill and produces less heat than less efficient power supplies. The flat black modular cables allow you to enjoy fast, neat builds. And, like all Corsair power supplies, CS Series Modular is built with high-quality components and is guaranteed to deliver clean, stable, continuous power.”

Externals

Small form factor cases and the push to Mini ITX designs took a dramatic journey during 2013 as the popularity of the smaller PC once again became a popular trend. Though a company like Shuttle, that hardly exists in the form it did in 2004, was the first PC hardware company to really drive home the idea of an SFF system design, many other players have released compelling products helping to strengthen it as one of the unique possibilities for enthusiast PCs.

Even better, though a Mini-ITX based platform could mean limited options for hardware and performance, with companies like ASUS, EVGA, BitFenix and others in the mix, building an incredibly fast and powerful gaming machine using small hardware is not only easy but can be done at a lower price than you might expect.

One entry that found its way to our offices this December comes from Silverstone in the form of the Raven Z, RVZ01 case. This case includes unique features and capabilities including the ability to support nearly any high end graphics card on the market (dual slot or single), space for larger heatsinks and even liquid coolers along with a home theater friendly look and style. Oh, and it's the same almost the same design that Valve used for its beta Steam Machines as well. (Update: Turns out the size of the Steam Machine is actually a fair bit smaller than the Silverstone RVZ01.)

Introduction and Technical Specifications

Introduction

Courtesy of Phanteks

A relative new comer in the enthusiast space, Phanteks has taken the hearts and minds with their high-performance and innovatively designed thermal cooling solutions. The PH-TC12DX cooler features a massive dual-radiator tower actively cooled by two 120mm fans with a copper, nickel-plated CPU base plate. The cooler cines packaged with support for all current Intel and AMD CPU socket offerings. To properly gage the PH-TC12DX's performance, we put it up against several similarly-classed air and water-based cooling solutions. At a retail price of $54.99, the Phanteks PH-TC12DX offers you solid performance without busting your bank.

Courtesy of Phanteks

Courtesy of Phanteks

Courtesy of Phanteks

The Phanteks PH-TC12DX cooler consists of a single tower radiator with four U-shaped heat pipes intersecting the its cooling fins. The cooler uses nickel-plated copper heat pipes to transfer the heat from the copper CPU base plate to the fins of the aluminum radiator for optimal heat transmission and dispersal. The tower is sandwiched by two high air flow 120mm fans for heat dispersion from the radiator. Phanteks went to great lengths to make sure the PH-TC12DX kept a sleek looking appearance from the black coloration of the radiator to the branded top-plate to hide the heat pipe termination points.

Courtesy of Phanteks

Phanteks includes everything you need to get the cooler up and running in your system: mounting kits supporting both Intel and AMD-based systems, dual PH-F120HP 120mm fans, fan mounting kits, a sleeved dual-ended fan power cable, and Phanteks PH-NDC thermal paste.

Introduction and Features

We have been reviewing Seasonic power supplies for over ten years here at PCPerspective and they have never failed to impress us. Seasonic is also one of the few companies that actually builds their own power supplies (along with supplying units to numerous other big-name brands). Seasonic has built a stellar reputation for producing some of the best PC power supplies on the market today. In their ongoing pursuit to continuously improve their products, Seasonic has recently introduced the S12G Series, which includes four models: S12G-450, S12G-550, S12G-650, and the S12G-750 that we will be taking a detailed look at in this review. Here are a few of the highlights offered by the new S12G Series power supplies.

The S12G Series is targeted towards gamers and PC enthusiasts who want solid performance at a user friendly price. To accomplish this Seasonic has designed the S12G Series on the same basic platform as many of their premium products but has forgone a few features like modular cables and fanless operation for price conscious consumers. Retail prices are currently ranging from $79.99 USD for the S12G-450 to $109.99 USD for the S12G-750 (newegg.com, November 2013).

Here is what Seasonic has to say about the new S12G Series: “The S12G Series is the newest addition to Seasonic’s families of award winning retail products, representing the latest innovation of our engineering team. To meet the demands of users who are looking for reliable 80Plus Gold performance for gaming and overall usage, the S12G Series is designed to support Intel’s Haswell processors, features more SATA cables and is an affordable solution for a wide range of applications.”

EVGA Enters the Chassis Market

Cases are a funny thing. Some people spend more time fretting over the chassis of their new system than any other component while some builders simply could not care less about what "box" is holding the carefully selected components that power their gaming rig. While I can see both points of view, I think it is a shame to completely ignore the "look" of your system as it will be the one part of your design choices that you'll see on a daily basis.

EVGA has a great reputation in the enthusiast market thanks to its top of the line graphics cards and the emphasis of the company on enthusiast level products, water cooling and more. In recent years EVGA has branched into motherboards (again), power supplies and now cases. But rather than target a market that was saturated and dominated by a few big players, they decided to target the Mini ITX form factor. Having just recently released the Z87 Stinger Mini ITX motherboard, EVGA has created an ecosystem that allows a builder to use exclusively EVGA components with the new Hadron Air case.

In our video review below you'll see our overview of the design, the positive and negatives of the design and of small cases in general and my final thoughts on this rather impressive mITX design. After you are done watching it head down to the collection of photos below for a written analysis of the Hadron Air.

If you have never worked in a small form factor PC before, let me warn you up front - this is not as simple of a process as building a computer in a standard ATX case. Space is tight and doing simple things like routing cables from the motherboard to the hard drive can be a 10 minute ordeal. Additionally, sometimes the ORDER of installation can make a HUGE difference in the ease of the entire process so pay attention to other users that might have used your particular chassis.

Don't let its small size fool you though, the EVGA Hadron Air can pack a lot of punch. Using the latest mITX motherboard and graphics cards from EVGA's lineup you can literally build one of the most powerful gaming systems around in its small 6x12x12-in space!

Introduction and Features

Be Quiet! has been a market leader for PC power supplies in Germany for seven years straight and in 2013 they are continuing to expand their PC power supply lineup into North American markets. Earlier this year, we reviewed Be Quiet!’s top-of-the-line Dark Power Pro 10 850W PSU and the value-minded Pure Power L8 Series with very good results. Now we are going to take a look at the new Power Zone Series, sprecifically the Power Zone 1000W PSU. The Power Zone Series features a 135mm Be Quiet! SilentWings fan, are certified for 80Plus Bronze efficiency, come with all-modular cables, and are backed by a 5-year warranty.

Be Quiet! is targeting the Power Zone Series towards discerning gamers and PC enthusiasts seeking high power, top performance and great features.

Here is what Be Quiet! has to say about their Power Zone Series: “The Power Zone Series provides the winning combination of superior performance, rock-solid stability, and advanced cooling. Whether you are assembling a high power PC or multi-GPU gaming system, your build will benefit from the Power Zone features. The Power Zone 1000W hits the sweet spot with granite stability, advanced cooling features, low noise and great value.”

Introduction and Technical Specifications

Introduction

Courtesy of Noctua

Noctua is a well known name in the enthusiast world for its high-end CPU cooler products. Their flagship cooler, the NH-D14, features a nickel-plated copper base with dual radiator towers actively cooled by low noise 120mm and 140mm fans. The NH-D14 can be used with all current Intel and AMD CPU offerings. The cooler was put to the test against other similarly classed air and water-based cooling systems to see just how well Noctua's design would hold up. The Noctua NH-D14 does not come cheap with a retail price at $99.99, but its performance and utility should make up for that initial outlay.

Courtesy of Noctua

Courtesy of Noctua

The Noctua NH-D14 cooler is everything you would expect in a premium CPU cooler - nickel-plating for corrosion resistance, twin-tower radiators for massive heat dissipation potential, and copper / aluminum hybrid design for optimal heat transfer from the CPU. Noctua designed the NH-D14 with a total of six heat pipes, laid out in a U-shaped design which passes through the copper base plate and terminates in the radiator towers. The bottom of the copper base plate leaves the factory ground flat and polished to a mirror-like finish, ensuring optimal interfacing with the CPU surface.

Courtesy of Noctua

Noctua included the following components in with the base cooler: SecureFirm2™ multi-socket mounting kit, NF-P14 140mm fan, NF-P12 120mm fan, four fan mounting brackets, a dual-ended fan power cable, two single-fan low power cables, a case badge, and NT-H1 thermal compound.

Introduction and Technical Specifications

Introduction

Courtesy of Thermalright

Thermalright is an established brand in the CPU cooling arena with its track record for innovative creations designed to best remove the heat from your prize CPU. The latest incarnation of their cooler line for Intel and AMD-based CPUs takes the form of the Silver Arrow SB-E Extreme, a massive nickel-plated copper cooler sporting two 140mm fans to aid in heat dispersal. We tested this cooler in conjunction with other all-in-one and air coolers to see how well the Thermalright cooler stacks up. With a retail price at $99.99, the cooler has a premium price for the premium performance it offers.

Courtesy of Thermalright

Courtesy of Thermalright

Courtesy of Thermalright

Thermalright took their cooler design to a whole new level with the Silver Arrow SB-E Extreme. The cooler features a nickel-plated copper base and heat pipes with two massive aluminum thin-finned tower radiators to help with heat dissipation. The Silver Arrow SB-E contains eight total 6mm diameter heat pipes that run through the copper base plate, terminating in the two aluminum tower radiators. The base plate itself is polished to a mirror-like finish, ensuring optimal mating between the base plate and CPU surfaces.

Introduction and Technical Specifications

Introduction

XSPC Raystorm 750 EX240 Watercooling KitCourtesy of XSPC

XSPC has a well known presence in the enthusiast water cooling community with a track record for high performance and affordable water cooling products. Recently, XSPC released new version of their DIY cooling kits, integrating their EX series radiators into the kit. They were kind enough to provide us with a sample of their Raystorm 750 EX240 Watercooling Kit with an included EX240 radiator. We tested this cooler in conjunction with other all-in-one and air coolers to see how well the XSPC kit stacks up. With a retail price at $149.99, this kit offers an affordable alternative to the all-in-one coolers.

Introduction and Features

The 750D is Corsair’s latest addition to their top of the line Obsidian Series and is the third new Obsidian case for 2013. The new 750D is a full-tower enclosure that offers a little more room, enhanced cooling, with expanded drive mounting options, than Corsair’s ever popular 650D mid-tower enclosure. The 750D is being introduced with an MSRP of $159.99 USD, which also makes it a little less expensive than the 650D. In addition to PC enclosures, Corsair continues to offer one of the largest selections of memory products, SSDs, power supplies, coolers, gaming peripherals, and PC accessories currently on the market.

The 750D full-tower case is positioned mid-way between Corsair’s huge 900D Super-Tower and 350D Micro-ATX enclosures and shares many of the same styling and design features as the 900D and 350D. Corsair is saying the 750D is a successor to the 650D but we hope the 650D mid-tower enclosure doesn’t go away any time soon as the two enclosures are still different enough to appeal to different users.

Introduction and Features

Be Quiet! has been a market leader for PC power supplies in Germany for seven years straight and now they are bringing their value-minded Pure Power L8 series to North American markets. Earlier this year, we reviewed Be Quiet!’s top-of-the-line Dark Power Pro 10 850W PSU and found it to be an outstanding high-end, enthusiast grade power supply. Now we are going to take a look at the budget-oriented Pure Power L8 700W PSU. The Pure Power L8 series features a 120mm Be Quiet! SilentWings L8 fan, are certified for 80Plus Bronze efficiency, come with fixed cables, and are backed by a 3-year warranty.

Be Quiet! is targeting the Pure Power L8 series for gaming with multi-GPU capacity, silent PC builds, multimedia and Home Theater systems, and photo and video editing desktops.

Here is what Be Quiet! has to say about their Pure Power L8 700W PSU: “The Pure Power L8 700W provides true affordability, peerless dependability and best-in-class features – not cutting corners and settling for less. Pure Power L8 700W features rock-solid voltages, strong reliability, high efficiency and exceptional quiet – simply the best combination of features, performance and quality in the class – at a very popular price.”

Introduction and Features

Corsair offers a full line of high quality power supplies, memory components, cases, cooling components, SSDs and accessories to the PC market. Corsair's new RM Series includes six models; the RM450, RM550, RM650, RM750, RM850 and RM1000. All of the power supplies in the RM Series feature all-modular cables, an energy-efficient design (80 Plus Gold certified) and quiet operation thanks to their ability to run without a cooling fun up to 40% load. The RM Series offers many of the same features as the Corsair HX Series (fanless operation, Gold level efficiency, fully-modular cables) but are a little less expensive. And all RM Series power supplies are Corsair Link ready, which means you can monitor the PSU fan speed and +12V output right from your desktop if you have a Corsair Link system set up on your PC. Previously the Corsair Link option was only available on Corsair’s premium AX Series Digital power supplies.

Here is what Corsair has to say about their RM550 PSU we will be looking at in this review: “The Corsair RM550 is fully modular and optimized for silence and high efficiency. It’s built with low-noise capacitors and transformers, and Zero RPM Fan Mode ensures that the fan doesn’t even spin until the power supply is under heavy load. And with a fan that’s custom-designed for low noise operation, it’s whisper-quiet even when it’s pushed hard.

80Plus Gold rated efficiency saves you money on your power bill, and the low-profile black cables are fully modular, so you can enjoy fast, neat builds. And, like all Corsair power supplies, the RM550 is built with high-quality components and is guaranteed to deliver clean, stable, continuous power. Want even more? Connect it to your Corsair Link system (available separately) and you can even monitor fan speed and +12V current directly from your desktop.”

Introduction and Features

Corsair’s Carbide Series currently includes eight models in different sizes, shapes, and colors (mostly black but the 500R is available in white) which includes the 200R, 300R, 330R, 400R, 500R, and the Air-540 High Airflow Cube case.

In this review we are going to take a detailed look at Corsair’s Carbide Series 330R quiet mid-tower case. The 330R incorporates superior sound absorption material for quiet operation, numerous cooling options, and support for multiple, extended length VGA cards. The 330R enclosure features a full length, hinged front door and comes with one 140mm intake fan in the front and one 120mm exhaust fan on the back with five optional fan mounting locations along with support for liquid cooling radiators.

(Courtesy of Corsair)

Here is what Corsair has to say about their Carbide Series enclosures: “Corsair Carbide Series® mid-tower PC cases have the high-end features you need, and nothing you don’t. Designed to be the foundation of awesome yet approachable gaming PCs, they combine the latest technology and ergonomic innovations with lots of room to build and expand, and amazing cooling potential!”

A unique enthusiast chassis

The Corsair Carbide Air 540 is a very unique case. It fits a full size ATX motherboard and up to four dual-slot graphics cards but it's shorter than you might expect thanks to a design choice that splits the active components from the mostly passive ones. The result is a case that is more square than rectangular yet still combines the charm of Corsair designs with the performance enthusiasts want.

For the best view of the case check out the video review below and then continue on for some additional photos and commentary.

Divided into two side by side compartments, the Air 540 has a unique front style merging a mesh look on the left with matte black paint on the right.

The right hand side includes two 5.25-in optical drive bays turned 90 degrees to fit in the smaller right hand compartment. Honestly, I am looking forward to the day that a case vendor is gutsy enough to leave off optical bays completely in an enthusiast design as I just think they take away from the overall appeal and looks.

Introduction and Features

Antec has one of the largest selections of PC power supplies on the market today and their new High Current Pro Platinum series includes three models: the HCP-850 Platinum, HCP-1000 Platinum and the HCP-1300 Platinum. The High Current Pro Platinum series is part of a second wave of new power supplies from Antec that replaces three older lines, the TruePower Quattro, High Current Pro (80 Plus Gold), and Antec’s Signature series. The High Current Pro Platinum series will be the new top class of maximum efficiency and performance within Antec’s range of power supplies with modular cabling.

The High Current Pro Platinum series is based on a design, co-developed with Antec’s partner Delta Electronics and combines several technological advancements and features to provide top performance and be the very best power supply possible. All three High Current Pro Platinum power supplies are 80Plus Platinum certified, come with all modular cables, and have been tested and certified by both NVIDIA for SLI and AMD for Crossfire systems. The High Current Pro Platinum PSUs also feature Antec’s new OC Link technology that allows two HCP Platinum PSUs to work in tandem to power even the most demanding systems.

Here is what Antec has to say about their new High Current Pro Platinum PSUs:

“Antec's High Current Pro Platinum series is the pinnacle of power supplies. High Current Pro Platinum is fully modular with a revolutionary 20+8-pin MBU socket for the needs of tomorrow. By using a PSU that is 80 PLUS® PLATINUM & ErP Lot 6: 2013 certified, operating up to 94% efficient, you can reduce your electricity bill by up to 25% when compared to many other power supplies. HCP Platinum's innovative 16-pin sockets create a new level of flexibility by doubling the modular connectivity, supporting two different 8-pins connectors and even future connectors of 10, 12, 14 or 16-pins. Backed by a 7 year warranty and lifetime global 24/7 support, the High Current Pro Platinum series embodies everything a power supply can accomplish today.”

Introduction

Courtesy of XSPC

The Razor GTX680 water block was among the first in the XSPC full cover line of blocks. The previous generation of XSPC water blocks offered cooling for the GPU as well as the memory and on-board VRMs, but did not offer the protection that a full card-sized block offers to the sensitive components integrated into the card's PCB. At an MSRP of $99.99, the Razor GTX680 water block is a sound investment.

Courtesy of XSPC

The Razor GTX680 block comes with a total of seven G1/4" ports - four on the inlet side (left) and three on the outlet side (right). XSPC included the following component with the block: XSPC thermal compound, dual blue LEDs, five steel port caps, paper washers and mounting screws, and TIM (thermal interface material) for use with the on board memory and VRM chips.

Introduction and Technical Specifications

Introduction

Courtesy of Cooler Master

The HAF XB mid tower case is the newest member of the Cooler Master HAF line of cases. Touted as a LAN box, this cube-shaped case has both looks and features that appeal to any enthusiasts. We decided to put the HAF XB on our test bench to validate these claims. At a base price of $99.99, the HAF XB is a bargain for the features you are getting.

Courtesy of Cooler Master

Courtesy of Cooler Master

Cooler Master designed the HAF XB with a scratch-resistance, flat-black colored coating applied to all surfaces. Both side panels have integrated hand-holds for easy lifting and transport to your event and the front and top panels contain non-impeding mesh grills allowing for optimal airflow across your vital system components. Integrated into the case's front panel are power and reset buttons, power indicator LEDs, audio input and output port, USB 3.0 device ports, two 5.25" device bays, and two hot-swappable hard drive bays.

Today though we are doing a preview of an even bigger case: the Obsidian 900D. Seriously, the Obsidian 350D can nearly fit inside the primary bay of this case...

Measuring 27 inches tall, 25 inches deep and more than 10 inches wide, the 900D will dominate just about any landscape you put it on, including a desk as you can tell in the video above.

It's height and depth give the 900D space for more processing and cooling components than you will likely ever really need to use, unless you're one of those few crazies out there. I mean, just looking in the window below you'll see we have a standard ATX motherboard installed and it is just dwarfed.

Introduction and Features

(Courtesy of High Power)

High Power Electronic’s Astro Series includes seven PC power supplies ranging in output capacity from 500W up to 750W. All of the power supplies in the Astro Series are certified 80Plus Gold (AGD-500F, AGD-600F, AGD-650, AGD-750F, AGD-750) except for two models that achieve the coveted 80Plus Platinum certification for high efficiency (APT-600 and APT-700).

• Off-Delay Fan (Fan Stays On After System Shutdown): This feature allows the PSU fan to continue running after the system is shut down for a few seconds to exhaust the residual warm air inside the PSU and computer case to help extend component life.